Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Living The It List Part I: Thursday 2/15/07

Writing about what's going on everyday and sifting through countless Myspace pages, band websites and Youtube clips is often a mind numbing task. This isn't to say that it compares to hard labor or anything, but it can be an abstract exercise and a real guessing game when one considers the typical disparity between a trashy 4-track to streaming player sound and that of an actual performer sweating and breathing on stage, or on the floor in front of a stage, or in a living room in Denton. Usually the results are far from what you would expect, and depending on your first digital impression of an act, the surprises can range from pleasant to embarrassing. Last Thursday's show at Rubber Gloves, featuring MC Router, Koji Kondo, The Heartrapers, and Eat Avery's Bones presented various levels of surprise, from good to, um, not-so-good. But even that's better than no surprise at all.

As people were still trickling in to Rubber Gloves in true dragged feet fashion, MC Router was beginning what was obviously the evening's anomalous set, which is a status that is to be expected when one raps about being an "8-bit Bitch" with a superior emulator. Or so you'd think. There was a disturbing number of references to other "Nerdcore" rappers and how Router was one of the first in the genre, meaning that all those other "newbies" should back the fuck up. Young local rappers 1-800 Zombie were on the receiving end of having an entire song dedicated to them, and Router also made several remarks about being featured in Wired magazine and the tech-friendly hipster site, Boing Boing. I know that narcissistic self-serving boastfulness is key with hip hop and rap lyrics whether it's sold out of a trunk in Waco or performed with extreme irony in a predominantly milquetoast indie rock environment and that braggart element is a selling point for many people, myself included. But I felt that the level of self-consciousnness during Router's set threatened to usurp the humor of what was mostly a fairly fun, enjoyable performance. I'm not going to pretend that I'm a Nerdcore aficionado and I honestly wasn't expecting to like this act, but Router is undeniably good at what she does, somehow managing to keep a string of tongue-twisting tech terms spilling out of her raspy throat without losing the hints of melody found on her recorded tracks. That's no easy feat either, especially in a live rap performance.

The next set took the show in the complete opposite direction, away from the well lit stage to the dungeon-like darkness of the RGRS floor. There was very little "floor banter" from Koji Kondo, who could obviously care less whether you knew who they were or not. They ripped through a scalpel-sharp set of tight and efficient skronk punk with complex guitar parts complicatedly ping-ponging around early 80's hardcore beats. The band was a perfect marriage of later Beefheart or Fred Frith free-guitar, pummeling punk rhythm and shout/speak smart-ass vocals. They seemed almost frightening as a practically invisible force (line of sight: not so good) that was somehow spewing an incredibly focused cacophony to a stunned crowd that just sort of vibrated in place, floor level with the band. Occasionally you'd get a glimpse of a wiry shirtless drummer firing away between snare and tom rolls, a brawny singer pacing the floor, and a guitarist that somehow kept getting direct hits with his fretwork even though he seemed to catapult from one wall to another. Koji Kondo were definitely impressive and seemed refreshingly humble with a head-down attitude. Too bad their set only lasted about four minutes, but that's pretty much the standard for frantic art punk bands that play 1919 Hemphill on a regular basis.

Decidedly less humble were Denton's Heartrapers, whose attitude towards the music and even the audience was much more attention starved and playfully confrontational. Depending on your opinion of this age-old Rock aesthetic, it was either great entertainment or gratingly annoying. There was an almost West Coast screamo feeling to their music, with The Blood Brothers more than likely an influence in addition to a handful of bands who peaked along with the rise and eventual decline of Buddyhead records earlier this decade. While watching their set, it occurred to me that DFW has had relatively few bands that would fit any of these descriptions, giving Heartrapers more of an advantage than they would have if they lived in, say, San Diego, the birthplace of much of this screaming style of hardcore. I expected a few more twists and turns in some of the playing, and though it was well executed, the rockisms in the band's demeanor were echoed by some of the standard riffing. None of what this obviously talented group did was bad and there were certainly some solid moments, but I left not being able to recall their music as much as I could probably imitate their various struts, stances and poses.

Finally, the group that goes beyond merely posing but instead transforms stages and clubs into their own personal carnival show finished things off beautifully. And I don't mean carnival show as in what the public sees, but rather the part that only the kids know about, complete with carnies doing meth behind the porta-johns after everyone goes home. Eat Avery's Bones has become a local icon, one of the few bands that brings a smile to your face whenever they take the stage. In this case the group was wearing its usual yet constantly revolving assortment of everything from a rastafarian cap (complete with fake dreads) to a brightly colored raincoat while continuing their lovely tradition of having an audience member don a wizard costume and hold the microphone in place for the group's drummer/singer. EAB's balanced mix of humor, energy, and chops is one of the best local live experiences and has yet to grow thin after witnessing their it several times over the past year. A couple of new songs (including one cover, I believe) were also nice surprises. Eat Avery's Bones will be releasing a split seven inch with Koji Kondo and I'm sure it will beat whatever over-hyped full length gets force fed to us all by publicist mafias, local and national alike. And to clarify, this was Eat Avery's Bones and not Midlake, which the band introduced themselves as early in the evening. I hope no one was confused.

I expected a pretty good show on Thursday (which isn't always the case), but this was surprisingly better than I expected. Even if some acts were more enjoyable than others, I respected the diversity in the well-rounded bill, providing further evidence that it's always best to take chances and book acts that don't necessarily fit together. It's something I wish more show organizers would do, especially in Dallas. At this point, nobody can afford not to take risks, artistically and commercially, lest we all drown in a sea of abandoned clubs, broken up bands, and apathetic audiences. People have to have a reason to care about local music, and let's face it: at this point, a lot of local venues and booking agents don't have a hell of a lot to lose.

179 Comments:

Great review! I hope to see more of these. I always enjoy it when you guys do actual show reviews. Eat Avery's Bones are wonderful, it's so rare to see people doing something so over-the-top original and fun. The show they played here with the also great Noun's Group is one of my favorite nights we have had here at SHQ.

Hello? Polvo! Did you all miss a big chunk of the last three decades or are you really that enthralled by shirtless people who..get this, play on the floor and not on the stage? Wear funny get ups? New and novel. Wake me up when the Appocalypse comes.

It's not any ONE thing, it's the combination of ALL things. Lighten up people... It's fucking music. Music is not sacred. Music is not holy, no matter what the toaster bangers tell you. It's a job. It's a hobby. Yes, it's an expression of self, but so is what shirt you decide to wear on any day. It is art, it is commerce, it is in the background, it is a trap, it is a lot of things... But come on. Fucking turds. Turd head. Eat a turd. turd turd eat it.

Agreed. I promise to work on it if you brush up on this "reading" thing. Deal?

11:41-

quote: "Hello? Polvo! Did you all miss a big chunk of the last three decades or are you really that enthralled by shirtless people who..get this, play on the floor and not on the stage? Wear funny get ups? New and novel. Wake me up when the Appocalypse comes."

Nothing sounded like Polvo that night. Hello, 90's music fan! I'm somewhat familiar with the last three decades, yes. Shirtless, funny get ups, and playing on the floor don't matter if the music isn't noteworthy. New and novel, not necessarily. But have you seen the average rock show in DFW? Sounds like the apocalypse has already claimed you if you're so convinced you've seen it all. Boring.

The meaning of all of thatSome media is the whackYou believe it's true, it blows me through the roofSuckers, liars get me a shovelSome writers I know are damn devilsFor them I say don't believe the hypeYo Chuck, they must be on a pipe, right?Their pens and pads I'll snatch'Cause I've had itI'm not an addict fiendin' for staticI'll see their tape recorder and grab itNo, you can't have it back silly rabbitI'm going' to my media assassinHarry Allen, I gotta ask himYo Harry, you're a writer, are we that type?Don't believe the hype

As long as you keep reading and talking about how boring it is and how much you don't like it, that helps me sleep at night. Thank you for loving us enough to suffer for our work and returning over and over to read it, though you hate it so. That's true love. You must love us more than your mothers.

you all love us anons. admit it. we are the voices of reason. we are like the friends you wish you had and need. we are the ones who will truthfully tell you "your band sucks dude" or "your blog sucks dude, learn how to write". too many bands don't have real friends with enough balls to tell them what they're doing is uber gay, very bad and rehashed. appreciate the good advice. it comes from a well meaning place from some of us. just because you disagree doesn't mean we're the bad guys.

i'm glad you wrote a review of the show. i was there and really enjoyed myself. i echo my sentiments of amazement from watching the koji kondo guitarist bounce from wall to wall and not miss a note. all 4 sets were wonderful in their own right.

you all love us anons. admit it. we are the voices of reason. we are like the friends you wish you had and need. we are the ones who will truthfully tell you "your band sucks dude" or "your blog sucks dude, learn how to write". too many bands don't have real friends with enough balls to tell them what they're doing is uber gay, very bad and rehashed. appreciate the good advice. it comes from a well meaning place from some of us. just because you disagree doesn't mean we're the bad guys.

the anons are the voices of reason around here? If so, we're all in really big troule. Most of the hateful anon comments demonstrate a lack of basic sentence composition skills and often showcase the inability to spell. Furthermore, even the ones that are able to overcome those basic problems still don't usually offer coherent arguments about anything. I honestly enjoy discussing music on here, and when people disagree with something one of us says, I have no problem with it at all. In fact, I encourage debate and enjoy it.

However, if you're not going to say anything meaningful, how is anyone supposed to take you seriously? And if you're using the tired explanation that you write the things you do just to annoy us or other people that read the blog, then fine. You're annoying. I guess you made your joke. Got anything else?

thanx for this blog its good to see a music blog that focuses on the underground, groundbreaking, nontraditional, music instead of the typical boring average music blog. I love what you do and i love reading the blog.. also i actualy get a kick out of the comments, and see how many people are out of the loop and afraid and jellous of whats hapening in music now a days, they cant stand that something is going on that they cant be a part of or dont understand...Keep up the good work!!!

i really like mc router. i thought the self-consciousness/ego thing was endearing because the whole nerdcore thing implies self-deprecation. but she's pretty awesome at what she does and is an actual nice person to boot. i liked the other bands too, esp heartrapers. i remember obnoxiously telling them a few times they reminded me of the crainium. gotta love post-set inebriated gushing mode.

im really curious to hear what shows all these haters go to. Theyre probably in their 30s(30 is young by the way but they make it grandpa), they rarely go to shows unless its sonic youth or a band their boring indie band plays. They probably think people enjoy watching their pretentious band cock rock for a hour long set.Let me guess this utopia is at the cavern or gypsy tea room in dallas(not to dis but dallas as a poor generalization is a jetsetter playground for trendy yuppies to play rock and roller on the weekends).Go to 1919, shq,rbgr,xtreme dudes manor, house of tinnitus,715 panhandle,the gonzales bros jazz and grind shows in dallas (rip metrognome).Get out there, we still need more people making things and being creative, putting out vinyl, touring, breathing fuck, dont be such a glitch tired old indie rockers, fucking dance.yippikayah!!!

anon 10:51, you sound like a total cock, and are ten times more pretentious than the people you are judging.So what if some people like to be listening to quality rock for more than 4 minutes and whats wrong with indie rock. I can take more noise and dance way harder than you ever could and im 36.The true musicians are the ones who can command a stage and who dont need these diy gimmicks.I meen where will all these diy art punks be in ten years.IN a gutter huffing glue and jerking of to my bands picture in alternative press thats were. What shitty excuses for musicians all the bands who played where, they should be lucky to even take notes from bands such as polvo!!!

I agree, bands that sound normal like tame tame and quiet would blow these guys out of the water and still have a career for themselves when its all said and done.The dallas scene is thriving, bands like stumptone and midlake are truly invigorating..

This thread has inspired me to start my own blog about local music, it will cover good bands that are truly amazing in dfw, none of this elitist wankery.Real bands that play where the local scene matters, club dada, darkside lounge, galaxy club.Bands that ten years from now will be the heroes of our lives.It will be better written and more relevant to the people that matter, and ill start it tommorrow, or the next day .But deffinately soon, okay.

quote: "To Stoned Ranger and Defensive Listening: What pathetic, wasteful lives you live. I'm going to go create something now while you just sit back and critique life. Journalists are just failed artists."

You're right. I mean what's more wasteful and pathetic: Us going to shows and giving our opinions? Or you wasting your time reading about it and commenting on how wasteful and pathetic it is. I'm glad you accomplished something. Hopefully whatever you create will be half as intelligent as this comment. If you're such a successful artist, why do you have time to write this at two forty in the morning? Don't you have fan mail to answer? Because I do, dammit.

PS-Thanks for calling me a journalist. My mom will be proud enough to stick this comment on the fridge.

Whoa there little doggie! Defensive Listening is right. Actually it's more like just plain defensive. You're a pretty insecure guy. Do you have a little dick? Are you a virgin? It's okay. Some desperate drunk chick will fuck you some day, buddy. Keep those fingers crossed!

Oh yeah, I called you a journalist because to call you a writer would be a lie, wouldn't it? Keep observing. There's a slim chance you might drop your pad and pencil some time soon and actually appreciate good art for once in your life. Toodles!

Look you guys should just fistfight. Maybe agree to meet up at, say, SHQ in Denton on Friday night at 8:00 where Bob White and The F-electris are playing with The Always Already from Austin. Hell, you could even come out and fistfight at SHQ on Saturday Night, at 8:00, while The Great Tyrant, Zanzibar Snails, and Harry Has A Head Like A Ping Pong Ball all play the live soundtrack to personal justice and your message board redemption.

if you aren't a complete tool that bases your opinion of bands off of blogs, Koji Kondo and the Heartrapers are playing a house show friday at 715 panhandle. i think trifle tower is gonna play too. just go listen to it yourself, this blog comment shit is getting redundant.

i can't get enough of hearing you praise me every day keep up the good work keep writing about my band keep up the good work keep writing about my venue keep up the good work keep writing about this little circle keep up the good work and I will keep telling you to keep up the good work amazing amazing genius keep up the good work keep writing about my band and venue keep up the good work as long as you do I will keep telling you to keep up the good work

is it just the same 4 people commenting on here? it all sounds like totally the same, broken record, broken record, broken record, broken record, broken record. (yes i'm totally hip and still buy vinyl)

All i can think about is how much ass this blog kissess , it haunts me at work, at home.It really owns me, these bands whos ass you kiss constantly encumbering my every thought. Goddamn you, goddamn you and these no talent hacks you put on a pedastal.I couldnt think of anything more harmful to music than peoples opinions, it really chaffes my inner core that you continue to write and that i cant stop reading it.Woe is me and anyone who hath discovered this harmful blog.

hey anon 4:34this is 4:11 , and im glad you can laugh about my comment, because even three hours later it still gets my guff that people can actually get on an "internet" and express their personal thoughts.What kind of world is this in wich people have differant opinions other than my own.I think this is ludicrous and must be stopped immediately.Anybody catching my sarcasm, i was pretty full of shit jeez, but alas those assholes really exist.How about my earlier tyrade against diy, im having way too much fun with this.If you cant get a decent debate or a cohesive arguement out of them , join them...